URBAN HEAT ISLAND AND CITIES DESIGN: A Conceptual Framework of Mitigation Tools in Hot‐arid Regions

Abstract

Urban heat island (UHI) is a climatological phenomenon which represents the difference inair temperature between urban areas, and its surrounding suburbs and undeveloped areas.UHI is considered as one of the major problems in the 21st century posed to human beings asa result of high rates of urbanization. The large amount of heat generated from urbanstructures, as they absorb and re‐radiate solar radiation, and from anthropogenic heatsources are main causes of UHI. In the ever‐urbanizing Arab region, the intensifying UHIcontributes to the increase of thermal discomfort of urban dwellers and, hence, the increaseof their environmentally unsustainable practices. There is an utmost need, therefore, tostudy this phenomenon and investigate possible mitigation tools.This paper summarizes the significance of UHI, its major characteristics and its causes. Moreimportantly, it attempts to form a conceptual framework of countermeasures, and urbandesign and planning parameters which help mitigate this phenomenon. In doing so, thistheoretical study capitalizes on immense literature which has addressed the issue, yet,basically from a climatological point of view. It attempts to look at the subject from an urbandesign and planning point of view. The study, therefore, brings together two disciplines,climatology and cities design and planning, an attempt in the field of UHI that has beenrarely tackled on the Arab region. The resulting collective conceptual framework is seen inthis paper as a necessary first step towards deeper investigation into urban planning anddesign parameters which could help reduce the impact of UHI and, hence, create betterquality of life in the Arab world.